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To put it simple. It makes sense for Chieri to feel discouraged after seeing that gloomy planet. What it doesn't make sense is for her to think the concert doesn't help when the situation in Lankaster shows the concerts do help.

Chieri's not from Lankaster, though. She may not be aware of how its socio-political situation has changed. Even for someone interested in AKB as she is, it simply not have occurred to her to track the political changes on planets that 0048 has gone to.

Anyway. Watching the episode now. ...Girls, why are you heading into that town? Have you forgotten that you're supposed to be hiding until your concert? Leaving the ship was bad enough, but heading into a population center? Are you nuts? Of course it works out, but it's still stupid.

Hmm... Kirara definitely lit up a little when Nagisa was singing for the girls. Not much, but it was definitely a sign that she was on the right track. I'm glad to see it again. Kirara's been missing ever since it faded out due to Chieri's embarrassment two episodes ago.

Oddly-shaped kirara showing up out of nowhere...

Interesting tactic. Bleh to the soldiers. Really guys, shooting live ammo at 13-year-old girls is just not cool.

Some of the kids gained hearts in their eyes. If they can keep themselves alive, there may be a hopeful future for them yet.

In regards to comments on the poverty of the planet, I don't think we're supposed to think that the lack of entertainment is directly the cause of the people ending up living like that, but rather that the poverty is simply a symptom of a larger system that includes issues like the entertainment ban. Hmm... I don't know if that came out right. The lack of entertainment is just one of many ways the government is opressing these people, and it's the overall system of oppression that caused the poverty, not just the entertainment ban. Idols just get the most attention when they oppose the government, because they're flashy. They're designed to get attention. But I believe there is more to these oppressive governments than just being anti-entertainment.

And Takamina keeps ignoring my advice. Pushing for her right to perform was good, but giving up near the end undoes all of that. I hope she gets a grip on herself after she recovers from her fever. You should not give up, Takamina! You showed you still have the spirit to stand up on that stage, that you still have the right to be there. And we saw again that Tsubasa respects audacity. Stand up to her, and tell her that what she is doing to both you and Kanata is wrong. The two of you deserve to stand together on that stage. Find a way.

This seemed like a slip of logic in the writing department to me, actually. After all, Lankaster is a perfect example of how even though their concerts don't have direct effect on the ban, they can still inspire people to fight for their rights and achieve social changes on their own. This is what happened in Lankaster, and that's why Nagisa seemed so confident about it. She had context that Chieri didn't.

Really? What changes did we see in Lankaster (or however it was spelt) as a result of the AKB0048 concert in the opening episode? Four girls were recruited, and a short concert took place. We do see scenes where the recruits, Nagisa in particular, talk as if that concert changed everything, but it doesn't look like that to me. Orine was still working in that industrial plant and trying to get by with handouts from nice older folks. I didn't see much evidence that the social and political structures there had changed after the concert. I thought Nagisa had a distorted view of the real importance of AKB0048 while growing up, one that shows up again briefly in her comments comparing this town and her own.

What about this concert on Tundrastar? Again it seems to have provided a brief uplifting of spirits and recruited another young girl. Are those people suddenly going to throw off their oppressors, rise up, and create a new village of freedom? It doesn't seem very likely to me.

If so, if this bleak theme really sits at the core of this story, I tip my hat to Okada-san. A theme like that upends the whole concept of idol worship and places AKB0048 squarely in the "circuses" category of the traditional "bread and circuses" approach to controlling the masses. It certainly fits best with the world depicted so far. The girls have small victories, but the forces of the DES and company are enormous and extend across the galaxy or wherever this takes place. The early Star Wars films, especially episode five, "The Empire Strikes Back," have an equally bleak outlook. The Empire is enormously powerful, and we are just a bunch of rebels in a few outclassed ships. The Rebel Alliance actually builds a military force, though; our young heroines so far work with the WOTA and aspiring young idols. The WOTA are effective, but I'm not sure they are ready to take on the Death Star.

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Originally Posted by Random Wanderer

Hmm... Kirara definitely lit up a little when Nagisa was singing for the girls. Not much, but it was definitely a sign that she was on the right track. I'm glad to see it again. Kirara's been missing ever since it faded out due to Chieri's embarrassment two episodes ago.

Having watched scenes from episode one again recently, I think it's really Nagisa's kirara even though it ended up with Chieri. In that episode the kirara sits in front of Nagisa's chest and points at her heart when she's full of emotion. It then returns to Yuuko (I think), but stays behind when she leaves. It does settle on Chieri's outstretched finger at the end and obviously leaves with her. By the time they are reunited on the ship three years later, the kirara isn't glowing much for Chieri any more. There's also a scene where we hear both their thoughts, Nagisa wondering why it didn't follow her home, and Chieri wondering why it has never glowed for her even after following her. It does seem to glow much brighter when it is with Nagisa than when it's with Chieri as in this episode. If this is one of Yuuko's kirara, is this a hint that Nagisa will become the next Yuuko? Why didn't it follow Nagisa home?

Chieri's not from Lankaster, though. She may not be aware of how its socio-political situation has changed.

It's not only Lankaster though. Just a few episodes back Tsubasa was telling the trainees how the general situation of the galaxy has improved thanks to the combined efforts of AKB and other factions. So there's no excuse for Chieri's line of thinking no matter how you slice it. It was a bit of sloppy writing, and even though it's not that much of deal, I still hope it will be the first and only case of it.

Other than that, I enjoyed the episode a lot, although I'm getting a little tired of the Takamina-Kanata subplot. I hope they wrap this up soon and move on.

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Originally Posted by SeijiSensei

I thought Nagisa had a distorted view of the real importance of AKB0048 while growing up at home, one that shows up again briefly in her comments comparing this town and her own.

They were teaching this stuff in Nagisa's school so it's not only her opinion that things has changed. Maybe the animation staff didn't know how to properly convey this visually, but the writing hammered the issue pretty strongly to be just Nagisa's "distorted" views.

AKB did help lessen the ban on entertainment so their efforts might contribute no matter how small.
I think Chieri was just being her cynical self or either it's Okada's fault.

But honestly since the part was so small, I totally didn't pick out. Like the other poster said...there's so many unrealistic situation going in this ep that really...it's just one line lol.....

Anyway considering the cliff hanger...pretty sure they'll wrap it up the next ep. I'm hoping they'll start to work on the beginning of Nagisa/Chieri storyline and then leave a cliffhanger at ep 13, which will ensure us of 2nd season...and maybe that cliffhanger involve Acchan

We're actually all getting trolled and Maeda is not going to appear until the final episode or something. This level of trolling would match the pedigree of the staff IMO.

I'm not sure about 0048 having no impact. The show does iterate that there is a strong push in the galaxy to repeal the ban. I think we're supposed to credit that to AKB. The previous planets they visited were supposed to be proof of their victories. But no idols = poverty!

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There's also a scene where we hear both their thoughts, Nagisa wondering why it didn't follow her home, and Chieri wondering why it has never glowed for her even after following her. It does seem to glow much brighter when it is with Nagisa than when it's with Chieri

The kirara thing is rather peculiar. For once, I don't think kiraras usually get attached to a particular person the way this kirara follows Chieri around (they even sleep together... no, not in that way lol). Kiraras are attracted to the radiance of the soul, so they flock towards the idols when they're performing, which is when their souls radiate the most. But that's about it. Chieri's kirara is behaving more like a pet, following her around even when she's not performing and pretty much nesting inside her hair.

Things get even more strange as we learn that Nagisa can make it glow, and of course Yuuko can too. So, why is this kirara so attached to Chieri who seemingly can't make it glow? Why not Nagisa, or Yuuko for that matter?

The one thing I'm pretty sure of is that it's not a mistake. Kiraras can even look into one's soul, so there's no way the little critter would stay with Chieri by mistake.

So it's kind of a mystery, and I hope it will be addressed at some point.

those Tundrastar girls's who gained hearts on their eyes & possibly also their hair as they watched the concert, what does that suppose to mean? do the other AKB members also went through that process? or they had them naturally ever since they were born?

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those Tundrastar girls's who gained hearts on their eyes & possibly also their hair as they watched the concert, what does that suppose to mean? do the other AKB members also went through that process? or they had them naturally ever since they were born?

Those marks seem to indicate a potential idol, so I suppose someone like Tomochin, who was born specifically to follow on Tomochin's footsteps would have it since they're born. But I think for most people it must be like what happened with that Russian loli. They see how amazing that world of AKB is and they dream to be part of it, hence the hearts appear.

Having watched scenes from episode one again recently, I think it's really Nagisa's kirara even though it ended up with Chieri. In that episode the kirara sits in front of Nagisa's chest and points at her heart when she's full of emotion. It then returns to Yuuko (I think), but stays behind when she leaves. It does settle on Chieri's outstretched finger at the end and obviously leaves with her. By the time they are reunited on the ship three years later, the kirara isn't glowing much for Chieri any more. There's also a scene where we hear both their thoughts, Nagisa wondering why it didn't follow her home, and Chieri wondering why it has never glowed for her even after following her. It does seem to glow much brighter when it is with Nagisa than when it's with Chieri as in this episode. If this is one of Yuuko's kirara, is this a hint that Nagisa will become the next Yuuko? Why didn't it follow Nagisa home?

I think it likes them both. The fact that it went with Chieri and stayed with her for four years should not be dismissed. It still chooses to follow her around, even though it's had plenty of chances to abandon her for Nagisa. Heck, look back two episodes ago. It was actually mimicking Chieri when she tried the "sexy" pose. It's gone to others nearby when their idol-spirit has been strong, but it's always returned to Chieri. I believe she will be able to make it glow by the end of the series.

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What about this concert on Tundrastar? Again it seems to have provided a brief uplifting of spirits and recruited another young girl. Are those people suddenly going to throw off their oppressors, rise up, and create a new village of freedom? It doesn't seem very likely to me.

It's not an either/or proposition where the people either suddenly grasp the future, overthrow their oppressors, and reach for the stars; or remain the same beaten-down hopeless masses we saw in this episode. Some things start small. Perhaps the people will never gain enough strength to overthrow the DGTO's hold on their planet, but one of the messages of the series is that it is always better to have hopes and dreams than to live an empty, despondent life. Care to guess what the suicide rate likely is on a hopeless world like the one we saw in this episode? If giving people hope through these concerts can give just one person the strength to keep living, I think that was an impact worth having.

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But no idols = poverty!

I talked about that above. I belive the no idols thing is just one example of a more wide-reaching state of oppression.

are to guess what the suicide rate likely is on a hopeless world like the one we saw in this episode?

Looks like you nailed that one, as a factor that was left unsaid in that episode; I recall that several Eastern European nations have some of the highest rates of suicide.

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Those marks seem to indicate a potential idol, so I suppose someone like Tomochin, who was born specifically to follow on Tomochin's footsteps would have it since they're born. But I think for most people it must be like what happened with that Russian loli. They see how amazing that world of AKB is and they dream to be part of it, hence the hearts appear.

It's like they found a potential would-be Jedi without having to do a midi-chlorian count.

I'm spending a bit of time pondering about how much of an effect the girls were doing, and how long their hit-and-run form of guerilla warfare would last, and how much of a dent they could make on the colonies. But several decades of dodging the DGTO indicate that they have yet to make a Midway or Waterloo in the lengthy guerilla war for music -- perhaps when that "sleeping giant" that is QS wakes up from a long slumber? And I wonder if Nagisa would be the one to wake up that giant?

those Tundrastar girls's who gained hearts on their eyes & possibly also their hair as they watched the concert, what does that suppose to mean? do the other AKB members also went through that process? or they had them naturally ever since they were born?

I guess it's like after the girls' hearts were moved by AKB performance, they might also want to grow up and follow their footstep of being cute, sparking idols of peace that spread happiness and music to the universe lol
It could also be that through their music, at least a seed of hope was planted in their heart.

About the matter of Chieri's Kirara...I'm pretty sure it's because she have a potential but at the same time she's missing something that stopping the Kirara from glowing.

I would like if there was a strategy like AKB0048 game, where you would have to hold concerts and the like to sway planets to your side, recruit new kenkyuusei, raise them as idols, and manage then. Somehow I think it would be a pretty interesting concept.

I would like if there was a strategy like AKB0048 game, where you would have to hold concerts and the like to sway planets to your side, recruit new kenkyuusei, raise them as idols, and manage then. Somehow I think it would be a pretty interesting concept.

That would be interesting. I would buy that game lol It sound more like a sport game than a music game lol
well..the closest we got to that is this..

I guess it's like after the girls' hearts were moved by AKB performance, they might also want to grow up and follow their footstep of being cute, sparking idols of peace that spread happiness and music to the universe lol
It could also be that through their music, at least a seed of hope was planted in their heart.

About the matter of Chieri's Kirara...I'm pretty sure it's because she have a potential but at the same time she's missing something that stopping the Kirara from glowing.

Chieri needs to truly let go of that mindset she was having at the moment, she is already let go one half of her troubled past behind when she and Kanata had that little talk. Now comes dealing with the other part...

Also, the whole Dualium slave mining really shows what type of corporate dictatorship they run. The girls are lucky they are dealing with a corporate dictatorship and not some insane religous government who would rather see entire planets burn than to allow one idol escape.

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On a different note, something I found amusing. When the Russian lolis panic at being discovered, someone (I think it's Yuuka) says a phrase that can be translated as "We're not suspicious people" meaning people who arouse suspicion, not people who suspect someone of something. I find it funny, because it would be hard to find anyone more suspicious-looking in that whole village than our trainees. Firstly, almost none of them are wearing any headgear, and the one who is is clearly doing so for decoration rather than protection from the cold, while the people who belong there have hats and earmuffs, as is appropriate for the cold weather. Next, their technicolored hair stands out like a beacon among the drabness of that place. Also, their clothes are clearly some sort of uniform, compared to the more homely and individualized outfits of the citizens, and said uniforms are almost certainly much more expensive than anything anyone there is wearing.

In short, not only are they suspicious, they stand out like a sore thumb. I'm astonished they weren't arrested as soon as someone saw them.

Chieri needs to truly let go of that mindset she was having at the moment, she is already let go one half of her troubled past behind when she and Kanata had that little talk. Now comes dealing with the other part...

I wonder if it's that simple. I remember that in the prequel manga kirara glowed for Kanata even though at that time she was still all butthurt about her father and bent on revenge. And in this episode kirara glowed for Takamina when she announced she was going to perform, even though that meant stomping all over Kanata.

Long story short, it doesn't seem like they need to have their mind all clear and stuff to make the kirara glow. Just a strong emotion is enough.

So whatever is happening with Chieri, is not just about getting something she's missing, or letting go of her current mindset, or whatever. In fact, as she is now she should be able to make the kirara glow just fine... and yet, it seems she still can't do it.

So either Okada hasn't put enough thought on this (and I'm overthinking) or there's something more about Chieri, although I still can't put my finger on what exactly it might be.

So whatever is happening with Chieri, is not just about getting something she's missing, or letting go of her current mindset, or whatever. In fact, as she is now she should be able to make the kirara glow just fine... and yet, it seems she still can't do it.

So either Okada hasn't put enough thought on this or there's something more about Chieri, although I still can't put my finger on what exactly it might be.

My, aren't you quick to jump to accusations against the anime's creators?

I think Chieri has still just been supressing her emotions, for the most part. Perhaps had DES not interrupted when the girls were singing for the lolis she might have made the kirara glow, but she didn't have the chance. While it does show up again when the four stars are singing together again at the end, it's hard to tell if it's brighter than normal or not. But then, they were singing a slow piece that's not so heavy on the overwhelming emotions that seem to set the things off. We just haven't gotten a good view of her when she's being an idol, while not supressing her emotions, and while the kirara is onscreen.

Imagine what will happen with the DVD/BD sales with the broadcast from the TokyoMX channel. Sadly, there is a lot competition (DAT FATE ZERO) that will make it hard for many anime to sell well.

I imagine nothing noticeable will happen. I guess you don't think AKB0048 is available in Tokyo, but actually it is. Almost all people in Tokyo can receive one or more of nearby local stations which air AKB0048.

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